Happy Birthday Kristen

I was greeted by mostly smiling faces and super excited gift givers this morning. Each one had a gift directly from the heart!!! Jacob got me some fancy pantsy jewelry, Samantha got me nail polish and lip gloss, and Asjiah was thrilled to give me a pink purse with Hannah Montana on it. The babies got me a cute Christmas tee shirt. It was very special to see the three older ones take such heart in giving...they are all very sweet! AND I cannot forget Shane, who got up too early, baked my cake and made homemade, from scratch, buttermilk blueberry pancakes! What a blessing!

Yummy!

At lunchtime we picked Jacob up from school and went out for mexican food...my favorite! We are going to have cake after dinner. All in all, a nice, relaxing day!

Jacob took this picture of Shane and I, thanks buddy!

PS: Nathan is not pictured because he has a cold and has not been his happy, smiley self!

Then, in a bit of an impromptu dinner, Suzy took me to D-Vine for a glass of wine and amazing appetizers. This was the first time I had ever done anything like this and I felt so grown up and sophisticated,.

Sweetest Hubby ever!

So, I am literally speechless. My birthday is tomorrow and Shane came home from work today and said, "hey, you want your present now?" I was a bit confused and said I could wait, but he said he couldn't. Ok, so I was beginning to get excited...what could it be? Well, to my shock he bought me a camera accessory...a new, fancy, way cool flash!!!!! I am overjoyed! As I get more and more into this photography stuff I have realized that yes, there is a bit of natural ability but also a whole bunch of quality accessories! The flash allows me to move the light around to capture closer to what the eye sees. He wanted me to have it tonight so I could practice and be ready for tomorrow...so sweet! Anyway, the kids, always willing models, jumped at the chance to play. I just love how the light is above them, just like the sun was shining in my house. (Thanks for that analogy Joy!) I feel more and more confident to take even better pictures...can't wait for the opportunities.

Gingerbread Houses

One of the best perks to having a Grandmother that is also a teacher is the kids quite often get to do some of the same projects. My Mom is great about saving some or bring any leftovers of the fun things she does in her class over for the kids to do too. Today, the kids decorated their gingerbread houses. Notice the concentration in all of them...adorable! Fun time if I do say so myself!

The completed houses!

Samanthaism

Our morning conversation after taking Jacob to school...

"Mom, you know I have a super, super long memory right?"

"Yes"

"Well, I can remember all the way back to being a baby. I can't remember you as a baby because God didn't make me yet since you were a kid and kids can't have babies, but I can remember a long time ago when I was pulled out of your tummy."

"You can? What did it feel like?"

"I was squished out and they had to clean off all the blood and stuff and then I took a nap?"

Hahahahah! She crack me up! Then out of nowhere...with much glee and excitement...

"Mom, Grandma and Grandpa found each other, then they married and became husbands!"

Hmmmm, need to work on that one a bit!

A TwIsT on an old Tradition

I have been thinking about all the sweets and baked goods that seem to surround this holiday, and how I unlike most, am not a huge cookie fan. Samantha made homemade applesauce for their Thanksgiving Feast and I thought "hey, that could make a great gift idea!" So, I made a practice batch for our family Thanksgiving and discovered just how simple it is. Crock pot, apples, sugar, cinnamon and water....add several hours to cook and done! The added bonus, my house smells intoxicatingly good....yummmmmm!

Favorite weekend in Dec

Our annual Women's Christmas dinner is always the first weekend in December and is one of my favorite parts of the holiday season. I have been so involved with this event for the past 5 years, and although I have stepped back this year, it does not make the event any less special in my heart! I still get to help a little, fill up my "servant" tank and not have the stress of the event piled on. It has given me a chance to reflect on Christmas beyond the regular holiday "to do" lists. Even now, with Silent Night playing in the background I can't help but focus on the reason of Christ's birth...to die for us. God gave up the biggest part of himself so that we may enter into a deep and passionate relationship with Him. Sometimes in the day to day of life, the most important part of this holiday can be over looked, and yet it is also so incredibly overwhelming. My prayer is that each day, throughout the whole year, I wake up remembering that God revealed His unconditional love one magnificent night with the birth of a baby.

My husband's new wife

For those that have not seen me yet, here is my new look! AND I love it! (Shane too) It has taken a few days to get used to the stranger in the mirror but the more and more I do I just love it!